The present invention relates to an improved lug assembly for drums, and more particularly relates to an improved construction of a lug assembly used for stretching drum heads in which a bushing for a lug bolt is resiliently locked against movement within a casing by the biasing force of an associated elastic element.
In one example of the conventional lug assembly of the above-described type, a compression coil spring is used to lock the bushing against movement caused by beating the drum by fastening the lug bolt for stretching the drum head. Within the casing, a flange of the bushing is resiliently pressed against the inner wall of the casing by the compression spring. This resilient locking mechanism for the bushing is accompanied by fatal metallic noise trouble which seriously degrades the acoustic effect of the drums for which the lug assembly is used. When the drum head is beaten, vibration of the drum head is transmitted to the casing via the body of the drum to which the lug assembly is mounted and generates inductive vibrations of the compression coil spring itself and the associated bushing. That is, the windings of the coil spring crash into each other and the flange of the bushing crashes against the inner wall of the casing to generate metallic noises irritating to the ears. The detrimental effect of such metallic noises upon the acoustic effect of the drums for which the lug assembly is used is larger than the damping characteristics of the springs which are in general very poor.
In another example of the conventional lug assembly, it is proposed to substitute an elastic piece for the compression spring in order to press the flange of the bushing against the inner wall of the casing. This construction may be free from the metallic noise trouble caused by mutual crashing of the windings composing the coil spring as the drum head is beaten. However, even this proposed construction cannot be free from the metallic noise trouble caused by crashing of the flange of the bushing against the inner wall of the casing, as the flange of the bushing is arranged within the casing in direct contact with the inner wall of the casing.
Usually, a pair of lug assemblies are provided for drums such as base drums provided with two bushings adapted for screw engagement with a pair of lug bolts for stretching drum heads, respectively. With such a drum, sometimes only one drum head is used in a stretched state and the remaining drum head is removed. Then, one of the two bushings is left free without engagement with the associated lug bolt. When the drum head is beaten with this free state of the bushing, the bushing tends to vibrate more actively than when same is in screw engagement with the cooperating lug bolt and this active vibration of the bushing apparently operates to amplify the metallic noise trouble.
Such conventional lug assemblies have a further defect in effectively preventing the lug bolt from loosening against screw engagement with the bushing.